An increasing n
umber of Japanese couples want to have baby girls and they are flying abroad to make sure their wishes come true. Though generally banned in Japan, gender selection is gaining popularity throughout the land of the rising sun and many are flying to Thailand to take advantage of the treatment.
In seven months, at least 90 Japanese couples have travelled to Bangkok to receive preimplantation diagnosis for selection purposes. The couples say they are forced to leave their country because gender selection is not seen as vital health practice and some Japanese doctors criticize the treatment as a selfish act by parents. In Japan, gender selection is only allowed if one or both parents has known genetic defects that could be passed on to the child.
Regardless, new preimplantation genetic diagnosis technologies are hot topics among couples in the country. Fertility experts say PGD gender selection is the best method to ensure a successful gender selection pregnancy. PGD can only be used with in vitro fertilization treatment and allows doctors to identify genetic defects in embryos.
An increasing number of genetic disorders can be diagnosed using PGD. Bangkok health officials say they are seeing increasing visitors from Japan because couples want ensure they will conceive healthy children before the embryo is implanted into the uterus. In the end, the gender selection process along with PGD helps prevent tough pregnancy decisions where parents could face an unfavorable prenatal diagnosis.
